# How Long Will Cigars Last Outside Humidor?



## organizedmadman (Dec 4, 2013)

So I got a little ahead of myself. While seasoning my humidors, I came across a few can't-miss deals. Long story short, they came a lot sooner than expected and I've got over 80 cigars waiting to be put away. About 20 are in ziplock bags, the rest are in shrink-wrapped bricks. I'm looking at another week two before everything is in order. Are they safe being left as they are? 
:ask:


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## Laynard (Oct 10, 2013)

I have a feeling the BOTLs here will say one word: tupperdor. I don't have any experience with them myself, but do a search. Lots of info here.


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## Merovius (Sep 11, 2013)

What Laynard said.

Otherwise, get some Boveda packs and they should be fine.


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## organizedmadman (Dec 4, 2013)

That's my problem, my only access to boveda packs are online, and the ones I ordered are a few days off. What's taking the most time is trying to calibrate both my hygrometers. I've got two hygro-set models, but whatever I do, the salt test registers wildly high or low RH readings despite adjusting the devices. The Humidors should have been seasoned by now but I can't trust what the hygrometers are saying. I'm starting to get frustrated.


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## 455 Punch (Nov 24, 2013)

How much time are you allowing for the salt test?
Enough salt, right amount of water, small enough air space?

I would say you're fine for the few days. Use your bovedas for the hygro cal when you get em.


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## zoey (Nov 17, 2013)

455 Punch said:


> How much time are you allowing for the salt test?
> Enough salt, right amount of water, small enough air space?
> 
> I would say you're fine for the few days. Use your bovedas for the hygro cal when you get em.


\

+2 on this recco


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## Joe K (Oct 30, 2013)

Get a digital hygrometers


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## knilas (Sep 15, 2013)

I would think as long as they are being kept in air tight containers and not exposed to drier air, they should be fine. Keep them sealed until you can get them into ideal conditions...no peaking!


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## organizedmadman (Dec 4, 2013)

Joe K said:


> Get a digital hygrometers


I ditched the analogue hygros on the first day, mine are both HygroSet digitals.

As for the salt, I use 1 teaspoon of regular salt, non iodized, with enough DW to make a paste. I have the salt in a shallow glass lid and everything goes inside a ziplock bag. However tonight I'm trying it with everything inside of a small Rubbermaid food storage container with a ziplock bag around that. I usually let it for 12-16 hours. 
One issue may be where I keep it. My office is in a wing of the house that has the original 50+ year old windows, so there is a lot of temperature fluctuation here in the winter between the cold air coming in and the furnace trying to push it back out again.

Tonight I've moved the container into the dining room closet where the temp stays constant.
Until the bovedas arrive and I can tupperdor them temporarily, I've stuck a freshly hydrated humicare pillow in each ziplock bag of sticks. Maybe that will take care of my issue.


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## alfred1222 (Oct 20, 2013)

A few days, and you will be fine. More then a week, go set up a tupperdor


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## MDSPHOTO (Sep 10, 2013)

You should be ok for a couple days but with the dry air of winter you may want to put them in some tupperware. Before I owned a humi and bought cigars I would take a small "piece" of a sponge wet it, it ring it out and put into a tupperware bowl easy quick fix for now. Better to have slightly wet cigars that can dry out over time in your box than dry sticks that are much harder to bring back.


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## Tobias Lutz (Feb 18, 2013)

For that short a peiod of time I wouldn't even waste the money on a Tupperware container throw them in Gallon Ziplocs and you'll be fine for <week.


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## cns187 (Dec 9, 2013)

I am going to be in the same boat as OP but I am going away on vacation and I am planning to buy a box of cigars the day before or the day that I leave. So lets say I buy a box of cigars Thursday evening and get home Saturday early morning. My new humidor should be waiting for me as soon as I get home but that still needs to be seasoned. Should I put the box of cigars in a tupperware? Keep in mind my humidor will be coming with 4 packs of Boveda 72% could I throw those in the tupperware while I wait?

Also, from the time I buy the cigars to the time I arrive home, will they be okay if I kept them in the box or should I bring a large ziplock bag to store them for the flight?

Thanks


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## Old Stogies Cigars (Mar 4, 2012)

A quick idea might be to use the silica kitty litter (Wallyworld, PetSmart, etc) used in wineadors etc... do a search here on PUFF for kitty litter and you will see many posts on it. It will at least help keep the RH at a "normal" level until you get totally set up.
I would think though that for a little while keeping them sealed should keep them okay as mentioned previously.


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## pippin925 (Jan 3, 2013)

Tobias Lutz said:


> For that short a peiod of time I wouldn't even waste the money on a Tupperware container throw them in Gallon Ziplocs and you'll be fine for <week.


+1 on Tobias' advice. Grab some gallon size ziplocs and use those for short term. Once filled I'd stick the bags in a cabinet or enclosed space to protect them from drastic temperature swings. You don't want to leave the bags on the table directly under your air register with hot air blowing on them or near a window with the sun beating down on them.


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## cprsquared (Feb 13, 2013)

organizedmadman said:


> That's my problem, my only access to boveda packs are online, and the ones I ordered are a few days off. What's taking the most time is trying to calibrate both my hygrometers. I've got two hygro-set models, but whatever I do, the salt test registers wildly high or low RH readings despite adjusting the devices. The Humidors should have been seasoned by now but I can't trust what the hygrometers are saying. I'm starting to get frustrated.


Hey Darrell, I'm the Business Development Director at Boveda. Sorry if I missed that your humidor is seasoning with our 84's in it right now while your new order is in transit, or if you've tried a different seasoning method? If you need to give us a buzz, feel free! 952.745.2910. We appreciate your business and your life is gonna be much easier once the Boveda go in your humidor. The temp fluctuations where you keep your humidor are no problem at all for Boveda. Cheers!


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## thebigk (Jan 16, 2013)

cprsquared said:


> Hey Darrell, I'm the Business Development Director at Boveda. Sorry if I missed that your humidor is seasoning with our 84's in it right now while your new order is in transit, or if you've tried a different seasoning method? If you need to give us a buzz, feel free! 952.745.2910. We appreciate your business and your life is gonna be much easier once the Boveda go in your humidor. The temp fluctuations where you keep your humidor are no problem at all for Boveda. Cheers!


 Nice to see you back on the boards Charlie


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## cprsquared (Feb 13, 2013)

Thank you Eric!


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## beercritic (Feb 13, 2011)

Set up a cooler. If you have too many smokes, you're just going to get more.


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## max_cjs0101 (Nov 29, 2013)

Would it be okay if i store&age them in a tupperdor (due to budget constraints)?
Im from a equatorial country and there's no seasons here. Average temps would be bout 82-97F with 80-90RH.


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## McFortner (May 13, 2007)

If you have a large tupperware type container, then go ahead and use it for short term storage. I'd recommend regardless that you double or even triple bag the cigars. The more seals between the cigar and the ambient air the better for temporary storage. I have a large (4.1 gal) Rubbermaid container that I've used for years that I call The "Tupperdor-O-Doom™" that was my primary humidor for a long time and now serves as my overflow storage. I hadn't had a cigar in a several years because of dental problems that I had to put off and I ended up not keeping an eye on my cigars like I should have. The "Tupperdor-O-Doom™" kept the humidity pretty well considering that it had gone unattended for a long time. My wooden humidor didn't fare as well and those sticks are having to slowly rehydrate.


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## organizedmadman (Dec 4, 2013)

cprsquared: Hey thanks! Coincidently I put in an order at Boveda for two humi seasoning packets and a few other ones right about the time you posted this I believe.

I've got my tupperdor set up faster than I expected, complete with the amazingly fast arriving heartfelt beads!






The cigars are three layers deep, is this ok for humidity distribution?


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## cprsquared (Feb 13, 2013)

organizedmadman said:


> cprsquared: Hey thanks! Coincidently I put in an order at Boveda for two humi seasoning packets and a few other ones right about the time you posted this I believe.
> 
> I've got my tupperdor set up faster than I expected, complete with the amazingly fast arriving heartfelt beads!
> View attachment 46983
> The cigars are three layers deep, is this ok for humidity distribution?


You asked, so I'll give you my candid answer! Ditch the beads. The easiest way to tell whether something is 1-way humidity control or 2-way humidity control are the instructions. Everything but Boveda has a MAX fill/wet. This means that the performance is 100% up to how much water the user adds and there is a point you can add too much. Compare that to Boveda, where we only have a minimum because there's no such thing as "too much". Using more than the minimum will work more efficiently and last longer.

So what'll happen in the corner with the beads, since they're only giving off high humidity, is that it'll be like trying to heat your house by starting a fire in the corner. Instead, throw a couple Boveda (65 or 69) on each corner. They'll be giving off a steady, perfect RH for your sticks.

Thank you again for your business, let me know when I can be more help. Cheers!


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## cprsquared (Feb 13, 2013)

max_cjs0101 said:


> Would it be okay if i store&age them in a tupperdor (due to budget constraints)?
> Im from a equatorial country and there's no seasons here. Average temps would be bout 82-97F with 80-90RH.


Hey Max, there's nothing more perfect that Tupperware with a Boveda in it. Tupperware doesn't absorb or leak moisture, making the Boveda work very efficiently. Cheers!


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## organizedmadman (Dec 4, 2013)

cprsquared - hey thanks for the info, glad to see you on here, I love boveda packs. Those aren't gel beads I'm using though, I'm using heartfelt industries 65% RH silica/salt beads, the only thing I know of besides Boveda packs that actually regulate the humidity. True, they do require occasional wetting, not as convenient as bovedas, but pretty reliable all the same. I love the ease of Boveda packs, absolutely love it. The only things that keeps me from making them the only humidifier in my boxes are that they're a bit pricey, and that they are meant to be pitched when dry. I'm the sort of guy that prefers reuse and repair most things instead of use and dispose. You guys ought to look into reusable packs, I'd gladly pay a little extra if I knew I had Bovedas I could reuse indefinitely!
I know there's talk of rehydrating them but I worry the RH would be off somehow. 

So here's an update. Finally got both digital hygrometers calibrated (still waiting on boveda shipment to check calibration benchmark) but both humi's are seasoned and filled with cigars. Within an hour of filling, they leveled off at 64% RH, even the old humidor with the leaky seal leveled off surprisingly quick.
Soon I plan to make a small desk-sized tupperdor or purchase a little 25 capacity box for my infused sticks. Although I enjoy them on occasion, I don't want them anywhere near my better cigars. I hear they can be a bad influence on nicer stogies if allowed to hangout together too long. :lol:
If I end up using Bovedas for a very small box, what RH would you recommend for Acid cigars?


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## organizedmadman (Dec 4, 2013)

Double posted somehow, Mods please delete. sorry!

cprsquared - hey thanks for the info, glad to see you on here, I love boveda packs. Those aren't gel beads I'm using though, I'm using heartfelt industries 65% RH silica/salt beads, the only thing I know of besides Boveda packs that actually regulate the humidity. True, they do require occasional wetting, not as convenient as bovedas, but pretty reliable all the same. I love the ease of Boveda packs, absolutely love it. The only things that keeps me from making them the only humidifier in my boxes are that they're a bit pricey, and that they are meant to be pitched when dry. I'm the sort of guy that prefers reuse and repair most things instead of use and dispose. You guys ought to look into reusable packs, I'd gladly pay a little extra if I knew I had Bovedas I could reuse indefinitely!
I know there's talk of rehydrating them but I worry the RH would be off somehow. 

So here's an update. Finally got both digital hygrometers calibrated (still waiting on boveda shipment to check calibration benchmark) both humi's are seasoned and filled with cigars. Within an hour of filling, they leveled off at 64% RH, even the old humidor with the leaky seal leveled off surprisingly quick.
Soon I plan to make a small desk-sized tupperdor or purchase a little 25 capacity box for my infused sticks. Although I enjoy them on occasion, I don't want them anywhere near my better cigars. I hear they can be bad influence on nicer stogies if allowed to hangout together too long. :lol:
If I end up using Bovedas for a very small box, what RH would you recommend for Acid cigars?


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## cprsquared (Feb 13, 2013)

organizedmadman said:


> cprsquared - hey thanks for the info, glad to see you on here, I love boveda packs. Those aren't gel beads I'm using though, I'm using heartfelt industries 65% RH silica/salt beads, the only thing I know of besides Boveda packs that actually regulate the humidity. True, they do require occasional wetting, not as convenient as bovedas, but pretty reliable all the same. I love the ease of Boveda packs, absolutely love it. The only things that keeps me from making them the only humidifier in my boxes are that they're a bit pricey, and that they are meant to be pitched when dry. I'm the sort of guy that prefers reuse and repair most things instead of use and dispose. You guys ought to look into reusable packs, I'd gladly pay a little extra if I knew I had Bovedas I could reuse indefinitely!
> I know there's talk of rehydrating them but I worry the RH would be off somehow.
> 
> So here's an update. Finally got both digital hygrometers calibrated (still waiting on boveda shipment to check calibration benchmark) but both humi's are seasoned and filled with cigars. Within an hour of filling, they leveled off at 64% RH, even the old humidor with the leaky seal leveled off surprisingly quick.
> ...


We already make Boveda that can be reused. All of them can now. It's well known that a Boveda that's exposed to an RH higher than what's printed on the pack will absorb moisture. We don't hide that, while we also don't actively promote it because in addition to being a precision humidity control, we market it to be activation and maintenance free. And they cost much less than ruining cigars/humidors using gel/crystal/beads and wetting them too much or too little.

As for Acid storage, Drew Estate uses our 69% pack in their single serve Acid cigars, so I'd suggest using that in an air tight container or 72% in a wood humidor, since it's likely that the natural air exchange of the humidor will mean that the 72's stabilize at about 69 due to exchanging dry ambient air outside the humidor. Thank you again for your business! Cheers!


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## organizedmadman (Dec 4, 2013)

cprsquared said:


> We already make Boveda that can be reused. All of them can now. It's well known that a Boveda that's exposed to an RH higher than what's printed on the pack will absorb moisture. We don't hide that, while we also don't actively promote it because in addition to being a precision humidity control, we market it to be activation and maintenance free. And they cost much less than ruining cigars/humidors using gel/crystal/beads and wetting them too much or too little.
> 
> As for Acid storage, Drew Estate uses our 69% pack in their single serve Acid cigars, so I'd suggest using that in an air tight container or 72% in a wood humidor, since it's likely that the natural air exchange of the humidor will mean that the 72's stabilize at about 69 due to exchanging dry ambient air outside the humidor. Thank you again for your business! Cheers!


Fantastic! Thanks for the reply. I've just received my Boveda order and am testing my calibration. The ones I purchased are much larger than I'm used to seeing. I've got 3 hygrometers in a small airtight Rubbermaid "sandwich carrier" with one of the huge 75rh bovedas. Already doing better than the salt test. How long should I keep them there ya think? 
I'm really happy to hear a Boveda rep say you can reuse the packs! How many times can I rehydrate?


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## ChiGars (Dec 11, 2013)

Keep them in there for at least 8 hours. If you can 24 hrs should be more then enough.


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## organizedmadman (Dec 4, 2013)

It's been close to thirty six hours now, two seem perfectly calibrated, although will occasionally shift up or down a percentage from 75% while in the calibration container, it that normal? My third one is a lost cause, it's a HygroSet from CI. Whenever I adjust the dial and lock in the setting, it'll jump between 3-5 percent +\- I'm thinking about trying to return it for another.


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## ChiGars (Dec 11, 2013)

organizedmadman said:


> It's been close to thirty six hours now, two seem perfectly calibrated, although will occasionally shift up or down a percentage from 75% while in the calibration container, it that normal? My third one is a lost cause, it's a HygroSet from CI. Whenever I adjust the dial and lock in the setting, it'll jump between 3-5 percent +\- I'm thinking about trying to return it for another.


Yes those two are fine.


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## Blue Raccoon (Mar 13, 2011)

put a wad of damp paper-towel in a cooler, put cigars in cooler take cooler to basement if you have one or the back of a cool closet.


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## cprsquared (Feb 13, 2013)

organizedmadman said:


> It's been close to thirty six hours now, two seem perfectly calibrated, although will occasionally shift up or down a percentage from 75% while in the calibration container, it that normal? My third one is a lost cause, it's a HygroSet from CI. Whenever I adjust the dial and lock in the setting, it'll jump between 3-5 percent +\- I'm thinking about trying to return it for another.


Hey Darrell, affordable/practical hygrometers are imprecise instruments. If you're within a couple points, I'd recommend skipping the adjustment part of it. Sometimes a single tick/dash doesn't always = 1% on the readout. So if you get close, make note and leave it. The Hygrosets are what we use here and we feel are the best bang for the buck. (We don't make them, but many come with our calibration kits)

As for re-hydrating, there isn't a reason it shouldn't work as many times as you try it. The only thing is that if you get them too fat with water by exposing them to higher moisture that what's on the pack, you could throw off the water/salt ratio and (for instance) a 69 won't be 69% until it loses enough water to bring the ratio back. Keep in mind each large Boveda weighs about 60 grams when it's born. Cheers!


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## organizedmadman (Dec 4, 2013)

Update.
With lots of help and great info from you guys, I think I've about got this thing whipped!
I've got both Humidors seasoning with the large 84% Bovida packs. All my cigars are sitting comfortably in the tupperdor at about 65%rh. My fiancé made me this:






a nylon paint strainer mesh sewn into a bag. It holds exactly 2oz of heartfelt beads, more than twice recommended for my box. This way I can reuse the humidifier case the antique humidor came with. I'm giving the Humidors two weeks to season before transferring the stogies. 
Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays to all you Puffers young and old!


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